You got 'em, I got 'em....most people have a pet. We love them like family. We feed them, we take them to the doctor (or vet, whatever you prefer), and we cry for them when they're gone. But for some reason, they tend to get left out when we are planning for emergencies and when a crisis happens, they're suffering from our lack of foresight. So I wanted to create this blog post to give people some basic and easy tips to make sure they're pet is safe if ever a disaster strikes.
An evacuation plan is a necessity for every home, especially if you live in an area where fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, flooding, and other disasters (like a zombie apocalypse or plague) are a possibility. Many homeowners create evacuation plans for their homes and practice them with their kids, but again, far fewer have considered one for their pets. Take these steps to add your pets to your evacuation plan. Also, check out the video as well....I have some golden nuggets of information there too.
Assign pet evacuation to an adult. Everyone should know how to act during an evacuation, and that includes assigning one parent or adult to the pets. This allows the other parent and the children to focus on their part of the evacuation plan, so there’s no confusion during a high-stress moment when time is of the essence.
Keep evacuation maps and pet carriers readily accessible. If you need to evacuate, you should know exactly where every important item is. If you pets require carriers, keep them in a place that you can access easily.
Practice your plan. Include your pets in your home evacuation drills. It’ll help you see how they will respond and make changes to your plan if necessary. Getting your dog out of a window may not be as simple as you think!
Be prepared in case you get separated from your pets. No matter how much you drill your evacuation plan, it’s possible that a dog or cat will run off while you’re focusing on keeping your family safe. A microchip or a GPS-compatible tag can help you find your pets once it’s safe to return to the area.